Tangmunjeon - Chapter 284



Only Noblemtl

Episode 284 released

Even though the food was served, Hyun-gong kept stopping his chopsticks and glancing upstairs. Nam-gung-myeong, who was sitting across from him, spoke in a disgruntled tone.

“what’s the matter?”

“The lady up there, doesn’t she look very special?”

Since the four people were sitting around a square table, Hong Geol-gae and Namgung Myeong had to turn around to see each other.

However, since it was impolite to blatantly glance at a stranger, Namgung Myung and Hong Geol-gae only slightly moved their heads and turned their eyes to look behind them.

Dang Mu-jin also looked upstairs again. It was pure curiosity.

Even in Chengdu, the hometown of Tang Wujin, you can occasionally see colored wooden figures, and in Chongqing, Luoyang, and Wuchang, you can see even more colored wooden figures.

The number of Saekmokin that Dangmujin has seen so far must be at least several hundred.

But this was the first time in my life that I had seen a woman of color.

The Saekmokin seen in the Central Plains are almost all merchants, and there are a hundred men among the merchants who go on trade trips that can take years to complete.

Moreover, the woman’s eyes and hair color were also rather strange.

The most common type of Saekmokin are those with brown eyes, black hair, slightly dark skin, and unusually thick beards. The so-called people of the Big Eater nation.

It is very rare for a person with yellow hair and blue eyes like that to appear in the fall.

Namgung Myung answered in a cold voice.

“She is unusual. But she is not as beautiful as Okryung.”

Except for Namgung Myung, Dang Mujin and his party briefly tried to remember who Okryung was.

And only after a while, I was able to recall the owner of the name. Namgung Myung’s fiancee, Jeong Ok-ryeong of Bowonmun.

“···Come to think of it, you had a partner too. I thought everyone was in the same situation except for Dang Mu-jin.”

“How could that be?”

Namgung Myung grumbled and answered.

However, by Hyun-gong’s aesthetic standards, Jeong Ok-ryeong was not a striking beauty, although she was a woman with an elegant appearance.

But beauty is very subjective, so it only matters if the person in question likes it.

Hyun-gong didn’t want the topic to change, so he smiled more generously than usual and brought the conversation back to the beginning.

“Anyway, this is the first time I’ve seen someone with such a unique vibe as that pretty girl.”

Dang Mu-jin and Hong Geol-gae narrowed their eyes.

Hyungong used to get caught up in a woman he liked. It happened about once a year. It’s been quiet lately, so I guess it’s about time.

The circumstances are different for each sect, but basically, Taoists can marry. The shaman sect does not explicitly prohibit marriage.

But just because it wasn’t forbidden didn’t mean marriage was encouraged.

It’s an atmosphere that can be expressed as something like, ‘If you really want to get married, I won’t stop you, but how about thinking about it again?’

Except for a few sects that were particularly positive about relationships between men and women, such as the Jumchang sect and the Kunlun sect, the atmosphere among Taoist sects was largely the same.

Sensing Hyun-gong’s gaze, the Saek-mok woman frowned slightly and looked down at the lower floor.

Hyun-gong tried to show me a charming smile, but it didn’t have much effect.

On the other hand, Dang Mu-jin spoke with his head bowed deeply.

“Namgung Myung or Hong Geol Gae. Who will switch seats with me?”

“why?”

“I want to avoid making eye contact with that woman. I promised Seol-yeong that I wouldn’t get involved with women in the future.”

Hong Geol-gae burst into laughter.

“What are you talking about all of a sudden? Do you think something will happen if we make eye contact?”

“No. I think I have a talent for captivating women without even realizing it. Seol-yeong and Wan-ah too…”

It was nonsense that was hard to listen to, so Hong Geol-gae gripped his chopsticks tightly, and Nam Goong-myeong unconsciously moved his hand and almost poured the hot noodles on Dang Mu-jin.

After finishing the meal and waiting for a while, the Shaolin monk came back and spoke to Dang Mujin.

“Listen, Grand Master. This may be a bit embarrassing to bring up when we first meet after such a long time, but can I ask you a favor? Of course, if it makes you uncomfortable, you can decline.”

“What do you want?”

“Can’t you just take care of one person?”

Although he seemed to know who that ‘one person’ was without having to ask, Dang Mu-jin pretended not to know and asked back.

“Who are you talking about?”

Akgugyeseung Cheongbok pointed behind him with his finger. As expected, there was a woman with a colored neck.

Dang Mu-jin shook his head.

“I am a married man with children.”

“···Who told me to marry that woman?”

“Ah… that’s right. Anyway, who is that woman that you want me to take care of?”

“I don’t know about that either.”

“···?”

When Dang Mu-jin looked at Cheong-bok, Cheong-bok made an embarrassed expression.

“This is the Saekmokin that the Gaekdo people found and picked up while fighting the northern Sapha warriors last time.”

Dang Mu-jin’s face hardened.

“You found him in the North? Judging from the atmosphere, he seems to have learned martial arts. Aren’t you a Sapa martial artist?”

“Based on the circumstances, I don’t think he’s a Sapa martial artist. We just met in that area, and he wasn’t with any Sapa martial artists. Besides, if he was a Sapa martial artist, he wouldn’t have followed us here. It’s clear that he followed us here for some reason, but he’s so quiet that he won’t open his mouth at all.”

Dang Mu-jin sighed. This was because he could guess Cheong-bok’s true feelings.

“After all, isn’t it my job to win that woman’s heart and make her open her mouth?”

However, Cheongbok firmly cut off Dangmujin’s story.

“No, no. It doesn’t have to be like that. Just take care of it. Our monks at Shaolin Temple are really awkward when dealing with women, so I’m asking you to do it.”

Dang Mu-jin now understood the situation.

Indeed, for monks who have only lived in the Shaolin Temple, which is a completely forbidden area for women, dealing with women must have been extremely difficult.

“If it’s difficult to leave it to the Shaolin Temple, how about leaving it to the Gaebangdo?”

“From the beginning, the Open Doors said it was difficult to deal with that woman and passed it on to us.”

“ah···.”

The woman with the color of wood had the air of a wealthy and high-class person, which could be said to be the polar opposite of the open-minded.

Of course, the liberals in the Justice Party would feel relatively less burdened, but since they seemed to have their own circumstances, I didn’t ask them any further.

When we got to that point, Hyun-gong intervened in the conversation.

“It is obviously a good thing to help those in need. I, Hyun-gong, am a Taoist monk of the Wudang sect and do not turn a blind eye to the difficulties of others.”

“You are trustworthy! I will trust only you, Hyeon-gong.”

Cheongbok answered as if he had been waiting for it, then expressed his thanks before Hyungong could finish his sentence and quickly disappeared.

Dang Mu-jin and his party glared at Hyeon-gong for taking on an unwanted burden, but Hyeon-gong tried hard to avoid eye contact.

*

Dang Mu-jin, Hong Geol-gae, and Nam Gung-myeong did not approach the Saekmok-in woman and kept an appropriate distance. The one who took on the task was not Dang Mu-jin and his group, but Hyeon-gong.

Of course, just because he took care of a woman who was a pervert, he didn’t have to leave the inn and live somewhere else. He just had to stay in the inn and take responsibility for the woman who was a pervert.

However, no matter how much Hyun-gong hovered around the Saek-mok woman and talked to her, the Saek-mok woman did not say anything.

‘He seems to be a very reserved person.’

Contrary to expectations, the woman with a colored hair did not stay in the inn.

She would go out of the guest house about three times a day and wander around crowded places.

He even gave Hyun-gong a subtle wink every time he went out. It was a look that clearly meant to tell him to follow him.

He didn’t know why he was being asked to follow him, but it wasn’t a big deal. Hyun-gong enjoyed the spring day that had come into his life.

However, Hyun-gong did not approach too closely and maintained an appropriate distance.

I thought the woman was being considerate, but in reality, it was more like the fact that Hyun-gong was somewhat of a coward.

In fact, Hyun-gong had never held the hand of a woman his age. Not even once.

‘They say a woman’s hands are much softer than a man’s. I want to hold her hand at least once.’

A few days passed like that. While walking down a crowded alley like usual, a woman with a colored hair was startled as if she had discovered something.

The woman with a colored hair checked Hyun-gong, who was following her, made eye contact for a moment, then pushed her way through the crowd and went somewhere. Hyun-gong also followed her diligently.

Where the woman’s footsteps had stopped was a man of color. He was of fairly large build, and like the woman, he had yellow hair and blue eyes.

Judging by his demeanor, he seemed to be a porter or an inexperienced merchant who had followed the merchant along.

‘Do you know him?’

The Saekmok woman was very excited and started talking to the Saekmok man in a language that Hyungong had never heard before.

A thought suddenly occurred to me.

The woman may not have been taciturn, but may have simply not known the language of the Central Plains and therefore did not say anything.

It seems that the reason he has been walking around crowded places for the past few days is to find someone to interpret for him.

The man with the colored hair listened to the story for a while, then spoke to Hyun-gong in a slightly awkward tone.

“Um, Taoist priest. This person asked me to tell you a story.”

“Yes. Go ahead.”

“They say they are looking for who sent the letter.”

The woman with the colored hair handed Hyun-gong a piece of folded paper.

Even before he opened the folded letter, Hyun-gong’s chest began to feel heavy. He wanted to help in some way, but it didn’t seem like it would be easy to figure out who the letter’s owner was.

The only information about the sender included in the letter is their name.

But the moment he read the letter, Hyun-gong’s expression became subtle.

[This letter was first sent from Sichuan Province, and if you deliver the same letter to seven people within twelve o’clock, great fortune will come to you. Geumga of Hebei thought he was being deceived and delivered seven letters, and the next day, he picked up five coffins of gold at the bottom of a cliff···]

The content of the letter was all too familiar. Even the person who wrote these words was Hyeon-gong.

Hyun-gong felt his fate approaching and asked the man with a trembling voice.

“Why are you looking for the person who sent the letter?”

“I have a favor to ask of the person who can send this many letters.”

It appears that the woman with the colored hair did not quite understand how this letter was spread.

I just thought that with so many people walking around with similar letters, they must have sent an incredible number of letters.

“Can you tell me what the matter is?”

The Saekmok man was talking to the Saekmok woman while intervening between the Hyeon-gong and the Saekmok woman.

“My lady and I come from a land far to the north. It’s such a harsh place that it’s rare for merchants to come and go.”

“I have also traveled quite far to the north, but I have never heard of any Saekmokin living in that region. By any chance, what is the name of that land?”

“I don’t know the name it is called in the Central Plains. In the language of the North, it means the northern sea, so if I were to translate it, it would be something like Beihai (北海).”

I thought there was only endless land to the north, but it seems there was a sea beyond that. Hyun-gong nodded in admiration.

“Anyway, can you tell me what you intend to ask of the owner of that letter?”

“The story is getting a little long, is that okay?”

“Of course.”

“This young lady is a person who has mastered the martial arts of the North. She is a person of great status. However, it is said that about two or three years ago, a person from the Central Plains appeared in this young lady’s family.”

As if it wasn’t a lie that he was a tall man, the man with a brown hair looked at the woman’s expression and hesitated.

However, in Hyeon-gong’s view, status was not the biggest issue. Rather, what was more important was the woman’s inaction.

The woman’s martial arts skills were quite excellent. If she had used her hands in this position, she could easily kill a large man with a dark complexion.

“Please continue talking.”

“It is said that martial arts are not taught to outsiders, but since the constitution of that Jungwon person was so well suited to martial arts, he taught them the martial arts of his family. However, one day, that Jungwon person is said to have run away with the family’s secret recipe and a treasure called the Mannyeon Bingjeong (萬年氷精).”

So he ran away with all the martial arts, elixirs, and secrets?

Now Hyun-gong could guess the woman’s intentions.

“So, you’re saying you’ll send letters throughout the Central Plains to track down the escaped person?”

“That’s correct.”

If a thief ran away to a faraway land, we can just let it go, but if the thief ran away with supplies and treasure, it’s a different story.

It would be right to send people to a faraway place to track down the thief.

Hyun-gong was lost in thought.

‘Just as I sent the letter for Brother Jang, could I spread similar letters throughout the Central Plains to find the thief?’

It’s not entirely impossible.

But it didn’t seem like spreading the letter would catch the thief. Unlike when he helped Jang Hyung, there was no way the thief would read the letter and come to the Dang family.

All a thief has to do is hide somewhere and pretend not to notice.

It was a situation where it was difficult to be of much help. However, Hyun-gong did not want to rashly show his weakness in front of the woman of his destiny.

Hyun-gong asked with the intention of showing his sincerity.

“Do you know anything about the thief? His appearance, his age, his name, or anything like that.”

As Hyun-gong spoke, this time the Saek-mok woman opened her mouth.

“I know your name.”

A clear voice. Very awkward, but clearly a Zhongyuan dialect.

Hyun-gong asked back.

“What is your name?”

Hyun-gong asked without much expectation.

If I were to spread the letter in the future, I would write a few words.

But unexpectedly, a name I remembered popped out.

“Baekhyang-ah.”

Hyun-gong opened his eyes wide.

The granddaughter of the Sword King. And the disciple of Muryangja. The woman whom Hyeon-gong took hostage using his mind. Baek Hyang-ah.

The eyes of the woman who spoke that name seemed to burn with anger.

The woman spoke one last word, filled with burning anger and hatred.

“Thieves are bad.”